Governor Scott Backing Down On E-Verify Campaign Promise

MIAMI (CBS4/AP) – Governor Rick Scott said Wednesday that he is softening his stance on the controversial E-Verify immigration program he championed while running for the Governor’s office in 2010.

The first-term Republican governor said that it’s up to the federal government to develop some kind of work visa program that doesn’t put Florida at a disadvantage. That’s a notably different position from his early days in office in 2011 when he called for a state E-Verify program.

Scott signed an executive order on his first day as governor ordering state agencies to use E-Verify to determine if current or prospective employees are legal. It was also Scott’s top priority in the 2011 legislative session, but Florida’s Republican-led Legislature balked at passing immigration laws favored by the governor that some described as tougher than those in Arizona.